These records
document the work of the Texas Punishment Standards Commission, whose statutory
obligation
was to
study and propose legislation regarding punishments prescribed for criminal
offenses in Texas, sentencing practices in criminal courts, and the effect
of
jail and prison overcrowding and lenient parole laws on the sentences
actually
served by defendants convicted of criminal offenses. Records consist of
minutes, agenda,
meeting materials, legislative records, printed materials, drafts,
correspondence, memoranda, reports, publications, and clippings dating from
1983 and 1986
through
1993, bulk 1989-1993. A number of documents are undated. The bulk of the
records have
been
maintained by Staff Director Carl Reynolds and Commission member Michael
Sharlot.

The Texas Punishment Standards Commission was established by House
Bill 92, 72nd Legislature, Second Called Session, 1991 (Article 37.15, Code
of
Criminal Procedure) to rewrite the Texas Penal Code. The Commission was a
25
member study group, 10 of whom were appointed by Lieutenant Governor Bob
Bullock and House Speaker Gib Lewis, while the remaining 15 were appointed
at
large by Governor Ann Richards. Texas State Senator Ted Lyon and State
Representative Allen Hightower were appointed the Co-Chairs of the
Commission,
and Carl Reynolds was brought on as the staff director. The Commission's
first
meeting was held on December 10, 1991.

By statute, the commission was to study the punishments prescribed
for
criminal offenses in Texas, sentencing practices in criminal courts, costs
relating to prison construction, and the effect of jail and prison
overcrowding
and lenient parole laws on the sentences actually served by defendants
convicted of criminal offenses. After completing the study, the commission
was
to propose legislation and make recommendations on criminal sentencing,
corrections, and the budgetary resources committed to those issues.

In order to accomplish its work, the Commission initially divided
itself into four subcommittees, namely Policy Development, to identify and
analyze policy issues for the whole Commission to resolve; Current
Sentencing
Practices, to study the procedural details of the sentencing system;
Correctional Resources, concerned with the cost of programs and punishment
options and the general effectiveness of programs; and Code Revision, to
weed
the Penal Code and modify the Controlled Substances Act. Shortly later,
three
task-oriented subcommittees were added: Multiple Offenses, Criminal
History,
and Ranking Offenses. Prosecutors, law enforcement officials, and probation
and
parole officers were invited to participate on the latter three committees
in
order to provide additional input.

As the subcommittees worked, Commission staff held outreach
hearings
across Texas to gather public testimony and opinion, as well as to educate
the
public about the criminal justice system. The Commission also formed a
group of
judges into the Judicial Advisory Committee to present testimony in
reaction to
subcommittee work presented to the Commission as a whole. Finally, the
Governor's Prosecutorial Advisory Committee was enlisted to provide their
expertise. To build across-the-board policy consensus within the
Commission,
the entire Commission and those who worked with it came together and held a
Summit meeting August 13-15, 1992.

The Commission's final report was made to the 73rd Legislature on
January 8, 1993. The recommendations targeted sentencing law changes, Penal
Code revision, resources for facilities and programs, and, generally,
focused
on creating a more honest system with more serious treatment of violent
offenders and more community correction emphasis for non-violent
offenders.

The specific legislation proposed by the commission took the form
of
House Bills 1234 and 1235 (filed by Representatives Hightower and Place)
and
Senate Bills 532 and 1067 (filed by Senator Whitmire). Senate Bill 532
focused
on state jail implementation and Senate Bill 1067 focused on Penal Code
rewrite
and sentencing provisions; both bills drew upon the work of the Commission
but
left out numerous recommendations and altered others. The House bills more
closely reflected the work of the Commission, but were redrafted to
resemble
the Senate versions. The House versions were substituted for the Senate
versions after the Senate bills came over to the House. On the floor of the
House, the bills caused lengthy debate and almost 60 amendments were added
to
the Penal Code bill alone. A three-day conference committee was needed to
resolve the differences between the House and Senate versions of the bills.
Finally, the two Senate bills were passed and signed into law by Governor
Ann
Richards. The Commission expired by its own terms on September 1, 1994.

These records document the work of the Texas Punishment Standards
Commission, whose statutory obligation
was to
study and propose legislation regarding punishments prescribed for criminal
offenses in Texas, sentencing practices in criminal courts, and the effect
of
jail and prison overcrowding and lenient parole laws on the sentences
actually
served by defendants convicted of criminal offenses. Records consist of
minutes, agenda,
meeting materials, legislative records, printed materials, drafts,
correspondence, memoranda, reports, publications, and clippings dating from
1983 and 1986
through
1993, bulk 1989-1993. A number of documents are undated. The bulk of the
records have
been
maintained by Staff Director Carl Reynolds and Commission member Michael
Sharlot.

Gaps appear to exist in the meeting files. Other files
record the
progression
of legislation that passed through the 73rd Legislature in 1993 as a result
of
the commission's recommendations. The most significant of these bills,
Senate
Bills 532 and 1067, focused on state jail implementation, rewrite of the
Texas
Penal Code, and sentencing provisions, involving changes to the Code of
Criminal Procedure and the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Finally,
materials contained in a set of research files were gathered, used and,
occasionally, created by the Commission in the course of its work. The
documents include materials on sentencing, drunk driving, prison crowding,
criminal procedures, plea bargaining, and various forms of community
corrections and prison alternatives, including home confinement and boot
camps.
A number of documents bear annotations.

To prepare this inventory, the described materials were cursorily
reviewed to delineate series, to confirm the accuracy of contents lists, to
provide an estimate of dates covered, and to determine record types. Due to
the
poor physical condition of the records, only the best copy of a document
has
been retained in cases where duplicates existed.

Organization of the Records

These records are organized by State Archives staff into three
series:

Restrictions on Access

None.

Restrictions on Use

Most records created by Texas state agencies are not copyrighted
and
may be freely used in any way. State records also include materials
received
by, not created by, state agencies. Copyright remains with the creator. The
researcher is responsible for complying with U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17
U.S.C.).

Technical Requirements

The researcher should be aware that many of these records were
at one time infested with insects, rodents, and mold growth. The material
has
been fumigated, refoldered and reboxed, but remains somewhat dirty and
odiferous.

These records were donated to the Archives and Information Services
Division of the Texas State Library and Archives Commission by Carl
Reynolds,
Staff Director of the Texas Punishment Standards Commission on July 8, 1997
and
September 23, 1998 and by Michael Sharlot, Commission member (through Mike
Widener at the University of Texas Law Library) on March 13, 2001 (The
researcher should note that these accessions were not obtained through a
normal
official state records transfer. Instead, the materials were privately
maintained outside of the Commission's normal chain of custody by the two
individuals who donated them); and by the Texas Legislative Reference
Library on
November 9, 2005.

Detailed Description of the Records

Meeting files,
1991-1993, bulk 1992, 1.95 cubic ft.

The purpose of the Texas Punishment Standards Commission was to fulfil its statutory obligation
to
study and propose legislation regarding punishments prescribed for criminal
offenses in Texas, sentencing practices in criminal courts, and the effect
of
jail and prison overcrowding and lenient parole laws on the sentences
actually
served by defendants convicted of criminal offenses. Minutes, agenda, meeting materials, correspondence, memoranda, and
printed materials document the meetings of the Commission
and its various subcommittees. Records date from 1991 to 1993, bulk 1992. The
majority of the records have been maintained by Staff Director Carl Reynolds and Commission
member Michael Sharlot.
A number of
documents bear annotations.

Arrangement

The records remain in the physical order in which they arrived from the individual donors and transferor, but they have been intellectually grouped by State Archives staff.
The meeting files generally appear in reverse chronological order by
subcommittee or by the full Commission.

The first two accessions of records were transferred to the Archives and Information
Services Division of the Texas State Library and Archives Commission by Carl
Reynolds, Staff Director of the Texas Punishment Standards Commission on
September 23, 1998 and by Michael Sharlot, Commission member (through Mike
Widener at the University of Texas Law Library) on March 13, 2001. The
researcher should note that the records were not obtained through a normal
official state records transfer. Instead, the materials were privately
maintained outside of the Commission's normal chain of custody by the two
individuals who donated them. The third accession was transferred by the Texas Legislative Reference Library on November 9, 2005.

Technical Requirements

The researcher should be aware that many of these records were
at one time infested with insects, rodents, and mold growth. The material has
been fumigated, refoldered and reboxed, but remains somewhat dirty and
odiferous.

Processed by

Nancy Enneking, August 2001

Rebecca Romanchuk, November 2005

Full Commission meetings

Box

1999/054-1

December 16, 1992[Files 1-2 of 6]

Box

1999/054-2

December 16, 1992[File 3-6 of 6]

Box

1999/054-5

Summit, procedures,
1992

Code Revision Subcommittee meetings

Box

2006/064

January 29, 1993

Box

1999/054-1

December 11, 1992

November 13, 1992

Box

2001/110-1

October 2, 1992

August 28, 1992

July 24, 1992

Box

1999/054-1

Memorandum,
May 26, 1992

Box

2001/110-1

May 22, 1992

Box

1999/054-1

April 14, 1992

Box

2001/110-1

April 3, 1992

January 10, 1992

Box

1999/054-1

January 10, 1992

Sections added to the Penal Code since 1973,
[1992?] [2 files]

Talking points, drafts, phone message,
1992

Memorandum with attachments,
January 20, 1992

Proposals for consideration,
January 23, 1992

Box

1999/054-4

Correspondence, drafts, printed material,
1992-1993

Box

1999/054-9

Memorandum,
March 26, 1993

Memorandum, Representative Place suggestions,
March 26, 1993

Chapter memos,
1992

Correctional Resources Subcommittee meetings

Box

2006/064

January 23, 1992

March 5, 1992

April 30, 1992

May 29, 1992

July 15, 1002

September 18, 1992

Criminal History Subcommittee meetings

Box

1999/054-1

September 11, 1992

July 24, 1992

June 2, 1992

May 12, 1992

March 12, 1992

Handout,
March 20, 1992

March 6, 1992

Memoranda and printed materials,
1992

Current Sentencing Practices Subcommittee meetings

Box

2001/110-1

November 6, 1992

July 10, 1992

May 29, 1992

January 31, 1992

Correspondence and memorandum,
1992

Box

1999/054-4

Correspondence and drafts,
1991-1992

Box

1999/054-5

Members and staff,
1991

Multiple Offenses Subcommittee meetings

Box

2001/110-1

March 27, 1992

Policy Development Subcommittee meetings

Box

2001/110-1

October 9, 1992

July 23, 1992

May 12, 1992

April 7, 1992

January 29, 1992

Assorted materials,
October 1992

Ranking Offenses Subcommittee meetings

Box

2006/064

February 28, 1992

March 13, 1992

April 10, 1992

April 24, 1992

May 15, 1992

June 30, 1992

Summit meeting memos, chart, August 13-15, 1992

September 25, 1992

Legislative files,
1992-1993, bulk 1993, 2.83 cubic ft.

The purpose of the Texas Punishment Standards Commission was to fulfil its statutory obligation
to
study and propose legislation regarding punishments prescribed for criminal
offenses in Texas, sentencing practices in criminal courts, and the effect
of
jail and prison overcrowding and lenient parole laws on the sentences
actually
served by defendants convicted of criminal offenses. Legislative files
record the progression of legislation that grew out of the commission's
recommendations, namely Senate Bills 532 and 1067 and House Bills 1234 and
1235, through the 73rd Legislature in 1993. Records include copies of bills, bill analyses, bill histories,
conference committee reports, memoranda, amendments, drafts, and a survey. The
records date from 1992 and 1993, bulk 1993 and are files of Carl Reynolds who
served as Staff Director of the Texas Punishment Standards Commission. The most significant of the
bills, Senate Bills 532 and 1067, focused on state jail implementation, rewrite
of the Texas Penal Code, and sentencing provisions, involving changes to the
Code of Criminal Procedure and the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. A
number of the documents bear annotations.

Arrangement

These records are arranged in the order in which they arrived from the individual donor.
Most materials are intellectually grouped by bill.

These records were transferred to the Archives and Information
Services Division of the Texas State Library and Archives Commission by Carl
Reynolds, Staff Director of the Texas Punishment Standards Commission on July
8, 1997 and September 23, 1998. The researcher should note that the records
were not obtained through a normal official state records transfer. Instead,
the materials were privately maintained, outside of the Commission's normal
chain of custody, by the individual who donated them.

Technical Requirements

The researcher should be aware that many of these records were
at one time infested with insects, rodents, and mold growth. The material has
been fumigated, refoldered and reboxed, but remains somewhat dirty and
odiferous.

The purpose of the Texas Punishment Standards Commission was to fulfil its statutory obligation
to
study and propose legislation regarding punishments prescribed for criminal
offenses in Texas, sentencing practices in criminal courts, and the effect
of
jail and prison overcrowding and lenient parole laws on the sentences
actually
served by defendants convicted of criminal offenses. These Research files
were gathered, used and, occasionally, created by the Commission in the course
of exploring criminal justice and punishment methods, standards, and
alternatives in order to fulfill their statutory mandate. Records include reports, publications, clippings, correspondence, memoranda, and
printed materials, maintained by Staff Director Carl Reynolds and
Commission member Michael Sharlot. The materials date from 1983 and 1986
through 1993, bulk 1989-1992. A number of documents are undated. The documents include
materials on sentencing, drunk driving, prison crowding, criminal procedures,
plea bargaining, and various forms of community corrections and prison
alternatives, including home confinement and boot camps.

Arrangement

These records are physically arranged in the order in which they
arrived from the individual donors, but they have been intellectually grouped by State Archives staff into this series.

These records were transferred to the Archives and Information
Services Division of the Texas State Library and Archives Commission by Carl
Reynolds, Staff Director of the Texas Punishment Standards Commission on
September 23, 1998 and by Michael Sharlot, Commission member (through Mike
Widener at the University of Texas Law Library) on March 13, 2001. The
researcher should note that the records were not obtained through a normal
official state records transfer. Instead, the materials were privately
maintained, outside of the Commission's normal chain of custody, by the two
individuals who donated them.

Technical Requirements

The researcher should be aware that many of these records were
at one time infested with insects, rodents, and mold growth. The material has
been fumigated, refoldered and reboxed, but remains somewhat dirty and
odiferous.